Tipping Cylinders for Construction Vehicles and More

Tipping cylinders are essentially standard hydraulic cylinders. They are primarily used to operate dump bodies, which are mainly found on construction vehicles. Tipping cylinders are manufactured in various designs. The most common type is the multi-stage telescopic cylinder with a ball joint.

Functions of a Tipping Cylinder

A tipping cylinder‘s function is to lift a filled dump body on one side. The dump body is attached at the pivot point. By lifting, the dump body tilts, and the load slides out. Dump bodies are mainly used for bulk materials that are not sensitive to impact. These include all types of building materials such as gravel, sand, concrete, crushed stone, excavation material, or overburden.

However, tipping cylinders are also popular in agriculture. Here, they are used on small dump trailers for farm operations. They are equally common for flatbed trucks with a tipping function. They allow for efficient unloading of hay, manure, silage, straw bales, or other agricultural goods.

Types of Tipping Cylinders

Four types of tipping cylinders are distinguished:

• Single-stage, single-acting hydraulic cylinders
• Single-stage, multi-acting hydraulic cylinders
• Multi-stage, single-acting telescopic cylinders
• Multi-stage, multi-acting telescopic cylinders

Single-Stage Tipping Cylinders

Single-stage tipping cylinders are the simplest but also the most technically reliable variant. They consist of a simple hydraulic cylinder, which is hinged on both sides to an axially acting swivel joint. They can only move the dump body or flatbed in one direction. Their advantage is the simple but very durable design principle. They consist of only a few components and accordingly have low wear. Should a seal fail, it can be replaced with a few simple steps.

The disadvantage of single-stage tipping cylinders is that they are very large and bulky. This often makes them impractical for small and compact transport vehicles. Therefore, where installation space is limited, telescopic cylinders are used. The multi-acting function of a tipping cylinder occurs when it ends in a ball joint. If the dump body or flatbed is connected to the tipping cylinder by a ball joint, the load can be unloaded to the rear or optionally to one side. In this case, it is referred to as a “three-way tipper.” For this, the driver must secure the dump body at the desired position.

Multi-Stage Tipping Cylinders

Multi-stage design is the characteristic feature of telescopic cylinders. Instead of a continuous piston rod, this type of hydraulic cylinder has several nested piston rods. These have the advantage of being very compact when retracted, making them ideal for installation under a dump body. The disadvantage of telescopic cylinders is that they are more expensive, technically more complex, and also more susceptible to wear.

Essentially, however, the advantages of multi-stage telescopic cylinders as tipping cylinders outweigh the disadvantages. They are therefore very often used for the construction of all types of tippers.

Tipping Cylinder Control

Tipping cylinders are available in many different sizes. Therefore, they are already available in the required size for practically every application. The end position is thus technically reached when the tipping cylinder is fully extended. To protect the hydraulic pump and for better controllability, tipping cylinders are often switched off with a limit switch. For operational safety, it is also advisable to supplement the hydraulic system with a holding cylinder. This maintains the pressure on the extended cylinder precisely for as long as desired.